Bulgaria strengthens squad for March EuroBasket qualifiers
The Bulgaria women’s national basketball team will be able to rely on another naturalized player following Khaalia Hillsman. Head coach Tanya Gateva will be able to field Stephanie Kostowicz in the EuroBasket qualifiers in March 2026, the Bulgarian Basketball Federation said here Friday.
The US player has received her Bulgarian passport, which means she can add further depth to Bulgaria’s team for the EuroBasket 2027 qualifiers in Group E. After three consecutive wins in the current window, Bulgaria will host Azerbaijan on March 11 and Ukraine on March 14, before visiting Montenegro on March 17, CE Report quotes BTA.
Kostowicz was born on October 9, 1995, in Franklin, Wisconsin (US). She is 190 cm tall and plays at positions 4 and 5.
She began playing basketball at the age of 12, following in the footsteps of her three older sisters. In high school she also trained in athletics, which proved beneficial to her basketball development. She studied at medical school and holds a degree in psychology. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee in 2018. She was named to the All-Horizon League First Team and twice to the Second Team.
Kostowicz has a solid basketball background. She currently plays for Rapid Bucharest in Romania.
The 30-year-old won silver in the Greek league in 2021 with Olympiacos. A year later she reached the Romanian Cup final and the league semi-finals with Satu Mare. She became champion of Germany in 2023 with Keltern. In the previous season, she reached the Czech league final with Zabiny Brno.
